Steller’s Jay(s)

This gallery contains 3 photos. Those rich azure feathers make it one of the most recognizable and attractive birds in Metro Vancouver, but I’ve never had much luck with that master of mimicry, the Steller’s Jay. The official provincial bird of British Columbia finally consented to have its photo taken in the backyard. Two of them, as a matter of fact, although a fair bit of squabbling took place. There is no dimorphism or distinguishing characteristics between the sexes, so it’s hard to say who uses the little girls’ room and who uses the little boys’ room.

bird’s eye view of a Steller’s Jay, taken from the second floor sunroom (Oct 17)
f/9, 1/500, 439mm, ISO 800

Steller’s Jays are not the sharing kind; they will fight each other beak and talon for every scrap of food they can find. Their song (if you can call it that) is harsh and grating and hardly pleasant to the human ear. Their resemblance to crows (especially the hooked beak) is no coincidence, as they are also members of the corvid family. The variation which visits our backyard is the Pacific Coast form, which sports light blue (but easily overlooked) eyebrows on a shocking black, crested head that transitions into striking bright blue plumage from the neck down, with dark blue barring on the wing feathers.

a shadowed, low light shot of the bolder of the two Steller’s Jays (Oct 15)
f/6.3, 1/400, 500mm, ISO 5000

Also known as pine jays or mountain jays for their habitat preferences, Steller’s Jays are the only crested jays we usually see on the West Coast (and at ground level – the crestless Grey Jay is strictly a mountain denizen). These omnivores are highly intelligent and quite crafty, and have been known to use the songs of other birds during the breeding season (although I doubt its repertoire is on par with the astonishing versatility of the Australian lyrebird).

closeup rear shot showing blue plumage and fine, dark blue barring on wings (Oct 15)
f/7.1, 1/400, 500mm, ISO 4000

While no one was eaten in the backyard, the other smaller songbirds (and even the Eurasian Collared Doves) made sure to give Steller’s Jays a wide berth when they visited the feeders and birdbath. Steller’s Jays are not just fond of protein-rich, high-energy peanuts–which is good, since we don’t put out any, to discourage squirrels and rats–our visitors ate sunflower seeds, fallen millet, and whatever else they could get a hold of. To learn more about the Steller’s Jay, please visit its Cornell Lab of Ornithology allaboutbirds.org profile.

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